All I've Ever Needed
by frozenmorningdew
Summary: AU: Zendaya meets the new boy in school. His name is Valentin Chmerkovskiy, he's from New York and from Zendaya's perspective, he's absolutely insufferable.
1. Chapter 1

**May 19, 2015**

I'm not really into flashbacks and reminiscing. I like living life in the moment. Life doesn't offer regrets, only lessons and that's how I've lived my life. My very short life. But you know what, I'll make an exception for you. I mean, there's a reason why you're here. You want to know me. You want to know about me. You're interested in my life, although I can't really understand why. It's always been pretty mundane. Well, It was before I met **him**. Let me tell you a bit about myself before you start snooping around in my memories. I am Zendaya Coleman. I'm a senior at the Palisades High School in Los Angeles. Yeah, I live in L.A. Lucky me right?

I'm a good student. I have a keen interest in social studies and English but my true passion has always been in the visual and performing arts. Drama, music, you name it. I was never that much of a dancer, unless you count hip-hop. Which most people don't. I'm getting a bit ahead of myself here.

I've never been the most popular student in school but I've always worked well with what I've been given. I'm stubborn, ambitious, cautious, dependable. A true friend to those who take the time to get to know me. Am I describing myself in a way that is appealing to you? Would you like to know more? The good and the bad, the beautiful and the ugly? I know why you want my story. And I'll start you off with the day I met **him**.

**September 20, 2013**

"That's not a solution for math. That's some sort of a spell by numbers."

"Very funny Spencer. Excuse me while I choke on your wit."

"Hey! You asked me to tutor you. And I graciously said yes. It's not my fault that you **suck. so. bad**."

"I have dyscalculia."

_She saw Spencer looking at her like he would a two-headed dog._

"It's a real thing. It's like dyslexia but with numbers… Stop looking at me like that!"

_She cracked a smile as he started grinning. That picture perfect movie star grin of his. Spencer had been one of the first to befriend her when she was a freshman. She had, of course, immediately signed up for the drama club and Spencer was one of the stars. He was tall, extremely handsome, smart and popular. Still, her_ _association with him didn't rub off. She didn't become popular just by being his friend. She didn't become popular at all. And she liked it that way. She had her circle of friends; Dom, Deja and Trevor. They all shared the same interests. She liked having a_ _small but trustworthy group of friends._

_She saw Spencer's fingers moving inches way from her face. She had zoned out. Again._

"You're not gonna do that in your audition, are you? I didn't spend valuable time training you only for you to go down in a blaze of glory."

"I'm not a seal, you didn't train me. You helped me realize my potential. And stop squeezing Bon Jovi song titles into every conversation."

"Never! It's my life. Have a little faith in me."

"Oh my god stooooooop."

"Jon is the ultimate artist. A singer, songwriter, actor."

"That hair though."

"Don't diss the mullet."

"How is it that you're as popular as you are?"

"It's a mystery isn't it? I've gotta go. I'm gonna go outside and lay down in a bed of roses."

"Dork."

"See ya Deer."

_He winked at her and walked through the door of the classroom they had occupied themselves in. Watching him walking away pinched at her heart. They didn't get a lot of moments together, where it was just the two of them. Someone always surrounded him. Friends, admirers, you name it._

_She knew it was highly illogical to have a crush on one of her friends, especially an older, popular, way out of her league friend who had every girl, and lets face it, some of the faculty, throwing themselves at him. But she couldn't help it. He just had that __something-something__. That "je ne sais quoi."_

_Zendaya had never had a crush before and for years she thought something was wrong with her. But this had been instantaneous.  
He had been the first person to say hi to her when she walked into the drama club, looking like a deer caught in headlights.  
That's what he called her. Deer. In her head it was dear but the way he said it, like she was this cute, little &amp; irritable thing, made her realize that it was just deer. A funny and cute nickname filled with brotherly affection. She just hoped that these feelings would subside and if they wouldn't … Well, this was his last year at the school. He'd be gone soon and then she wouldn't have to see him everyday._

_The bell rang and Zendaya grabbed her things, making her way to one of her favorite elective classes, psychology. As she walked into the classroom, she noticed that her usual seat had been moved to make way for a table and a chair. A new student?_

"Take your seats everyone, we have an exciting lesson today: Sigmund Freud vs. Carl Jung, the master and the pupil."

_The groans around the room could probably be heard around the whole school._

"Now, before we start I wanna ask Valentin Chmerkovskiy… Valentin? Where did he go?"

_Zendaya looked at the door just as a boy walked through. A boy? He looked like a man. He was wearing a white t-shirt with a photo of a girl on it. It looked quite retro. He had on blue pants. On his head was a beanie that the teacher immediately told him to take off. When he did she saw that his hair was gelled to infinity. He had a bit of a beard, which was a rarity for the boys in the school. As she stared at his face she suddenly caught his eyes. Green like emeralds. And now those same eyes were staring right into hers, like they were staring through her skin straight into her soul. This boy was a contradiction. Hipster from the neck down, pretty boy from the neck up, with eyes that exposed more than he probably wanted._

"Valentin is a …"

"Val."

"Right. Val is a new student. He's a senior and is transferring here from …"

_The teacher frantically looked through the papers in her hand trying to find the answer._

"New York. I'm from New York."

"Yes. Of course. Do you have anything you would like to say to your new friends?"

_Zendaya could see Val struggling not to roll his eyes._

"I'm good."

"Alright. Not much of a talker I see. That doesn't matter. Our class is all about the mind. Take a seat, we put one right next to Zendaya. Raise you hand Zendaya."

_She raised her hand without even thinking and felt a little embarrassed when she saw him looking at her with a bored expression. He sat down next to her and she noticed that he didn't have a notebook or any sort of stationery._

"You're gonna need this. For notes."

_She handed him a piece of paper and a pencil. He looked at her for a moment and then grabbed the things from her._

"I'm not much of a note kind of guy though."

"Well, this is definitely a note kind of class so you better change your way of learning. And normally people say thanks when given any kind if help."

"I never need any help."

_He smirked at her and she felt her cheeks heating up. He was insufferable, she could already tell that this was going to be a long semester._

"So, what kind of a class is this? I've already finished all of my core classes so I'm basically just doing electives. I just put a cross next to a bunch of shit so I don't really know what I'm getting myself into."

"We're not supposed to talk during lectures."

_She saw him raise his eyebrows and opening his mouth before turning his attention to the person on his other side, a perky blonde cheerleader named Coral Brigitte._

"Am I going to be seated here for the rest of the semester?"

_She heard Coral giggle, probably batting her eyelashes while responding with a yes in a baby voice. How dreadful she was. She could hear the glee in his voice when he responded back_.

"Well, at least I don't have stale bread on both of my sides."

_Yes. This was going to be a long semester._


	2. Chapter 2

**September 30, 2013**

_Zendaya stared at the clock, impatiently waiting for the bigger hand to hit 12 so the bell would ring. She hadn't been able to concentrate during the whole class. It was mostly due to her anxiety. After school she would be auditioning for the part of Ariel Moore in the school's production of Footloose. The lead female part. She had never auditioned for a lead part before and for the past couple of days she had felt like her whole world was closing in on her. She wasn't shy and she didn't have stage fright. She had the utmost confidence in her ability. It was Spencer._

_Spencer was auditioning for the part of Ren. Spencer was a__shoe__-in for the part. There was no one else in the whole school that even came close to him. He had the voice, the dance ability, the acting chops. He was the whole package. And that was the problem. Zendaya didn't know if she was auditioning because of the experience it would give her, or because she wanted to act against him. A dilemma had formed in her mind. You see, Ariel was Ren's love interest. So there would be a lot of closeness, some kissing. Zendaya was 16 yet she had never kissed anyone before. And she wanted Spencer to be her first kiss but not while they were pretending to be somebody else. But when it came down to it, there was no one in this world that she wanted to get that part more than him. He was a star and everyone could see it._

_She was startled out of her thoughts by a girlish giggle. Ms. Koolen, the art teacher, was fawning over someone. Oh, that someone was Val. The boy from New York who seemed to pop up in whatever class Zendaya was in. Well, four of them. She didn't really understand what he was doing most of the time. He didn't seem to show any interest in anything regarding the subjects they were in. He never faltered though. Every time a teacher called him on he would just flash that smirk, disguised as a grin, and somehow charm himself out of every question, every situation that was presented to him. _

_He had an overpowering presence. It was like everyone who laid eyes on him became immediately mesmerized and everything else disappeared. She didn't see it though. She had spent the last 40 minutes desperately trying to get the right contrast of light and shadow on her drawing of a bowl of fruit while the rest of the class practically gasped in amazement over his drawing. It couldn't be that good. She wasn't going to look._

_She didn't understand this reaction she had whenever he was around. Or not even around. She had spent last weekend finding adjectives that could describe how unbearable she found him. She had stopped at 50 words. He vocabulary wasn't substantial enough to express her annoyance towards him. But why?_

_The bell finally rang and Zendaya hurriedly packed her belongings into her bag. As she walked into the corridor she felt a presence besides her. Just great._

"You disappear very fast, did you know that?"

"I'm a busy person with a lot to do. I don't have time to …"

"Stop and smell the roses?"

"Fawn over tedious things."

"Ouch. I guess you're going to that audition thing now. I thought that wasn't until 4:30."

_Zendaya stopped in her tracks and spun so that she was face to face with him._

"How did you know about my audition?"

"You were talking about it with your friend. The blonde, loud one."

"Were you listening to my private conversation?"

"No. Your loud friend was talking very loudly, very closely to me. She kept looking at me too. But that's normal. I've seen the selection of boys here. It's not a very L.A. looking crowd, is it?"

_Zendaya felt quite offended on the behalf of her classmates. _

"I'll have you know that there are many very handsome boys at this school."

_She scanned the corridor until she saw a boy called Derek._

"Like him for example."

_She nodded her head towards the blonde that looked like he belonged in a surf shop down in Santa Monica. Val looked at him and grimaced._

"He looks kind of waspy."

"Waspy?"

"Yeah, like a wasp. It's a fly."

"I hate flies."

_A small smile grazed Val's lips._

"Are we bonding right now? Because I really wasn't prepared for this very open conversation were having. Hostility is kind of your thing."

"It is not."

"Well, maybe our thing."

"We don't have anything."

_Val let out a little laugh and she saw his eyes twinkle._

"You don't let a lot of people near you."

"Excuse me?"

"You're very resistive. Withstanding. Hard to crack."

"I understand English."

"Well you should with that big ass thesaurus you carry around everywhere with you."

_Zendaya looked down at her arms, which were wrapped around said big ass book._

"It's essential to have a varied vocabulary."

"It makes you slouch."

_She looked at him with apprehension, not knowing if he was making fun of her or actually, and creepily, worrying about her posture._

"I have to go."

"Maybe I'll see you at the auditions. I need a good laugh."

_And with that Zendaya's cheeks started heating with anger. She turned on her feet and walked away, as quickly as she could. A minute longer in his presence would only make her blood boil over._

—

"Very good Spencer. You truly set the bar high for everyone. Keep up the good work."

_Zendaya beamed as Spencer got his praise. He walked off stage and winked at her while mouthing good luck. They had already done their scene reading and now only the song audition was left. _

"Who is next on stage? Aah Zendaya, we're ready for you."

_The director, Mrs. Hooper was a kind woman in her 50's with broken aspirations of directing high-profile films. Apparently Hollywood chews you up and spits you out if you're a woman who wants to direct._

"What will you be singing for us today?"

"I wanted to have that 80's feeling, since the play does take place in that time period. So I'm going to be singing "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" by Whitney Houston."

_She saw Mrs. Hooper smiling at her._

"As an 80's teen I applaud you for that song choice. Whenever you're ready."

_Zendaya nodded her head and the auditorium was filled with an up-tempo beat. She wanted to play a part so she swayed her hips and flipped her hair all while belting out a version that would have gotten a standing ovation by Whitney herself. _

"Brava! Zendaya, you have grown so much since the last time you were up here. I see great potential in you. I think you're going to be happy with my final decision regarding the casting."

_Zendaya smiled thankfully towards Mrs. Hooper. She looked over the auditorium. No Val in sight. This day did have potential after all._

"Now, seeing as Zendaya was the last audition I think I can safely say …"

_All of a sudden she stopped speaking and Zendaya saw how the assistant director was talking in a hushed tone with her._

"Well, well. It seems as though we have a late caller. Is there a Valentin Chmerkovskiy here?

_Suddenly Zendaya heard his voice._

"It's just Val."

_He walked from the back of the stage, where the curtains were drawn. _

"Well, just Val. I am ready to hear your audition. Do you have a monologue ready?"

"I do. I took a part of the play though so I need some assistance. Maybe Zendaya could help me? She is auditioning for the part of Ariel so that would fit perfectly."

_That evil, up to no good smirk was cemented on his face. _

"Of course she can. It's good practise. What part will you be reading?

"The part where Ren is trying to convince the Reverend that dance isn't all that bad."

"Then you need a Reverend. Spencer, would you do the honours?"

Spencer looked dumbfounded but managed to croak out a yes.

"Great. Start when you're ready."

_Spencer started the scene, looking quite uncomfortable with the whole thing. He stumbled a couple of times and Zendaya felt sorry for him. He wasn't used to not being in the spotlight._

_All of a sudden Val started. It was a transformation. Before her eyes stood someone who was passionate. Someone who believed every line that stood on that piece of paper. Someone who made her believe every line on that paper. Was this the same boy as the one in her classes? The one who had never shown any interest in anything besides talking through the whole class and making snide remarks about every topic._

_She faltered a bit when her part came on but quickly managed to pick herself up again. She saw how Val was itching closer to her. There's was a thumping in her chest, one that she couldn't understand. Why was he so close? Her breathing became a bit erratic. And then she stopped. There were no more lines. It was just her standing, clutching the script in her hand and him, standing right in front of her. _

_Zendaya snapped out of her daze and moved a couple of steps back. She looked at Spencer who had a confused look on his face. When she looked out into the auditorium she saw her fellow students whispering between themselves and Mrs. Hooper peering her eyes at the two of them._

"Interesting" _was the only reaction Mrs. Hooper gave. _

"I have made my decision. Being a director is all about taking chances. Val, you are able to sing, aren't you?"

"I wouldn't be here if couldn't."

"Yes… Yes… Very well, Zendaya, congratulations you are Ariel!"

_Zendaya let out a shriek and ran into Spencer's arms. She was beyond elated, this was everything she had ever wanted._

"I feel this in my bones and that is the reason I'm doing this. Val, congratulations.**You are Ren.**"

_And with those 3 words, Zendaya's dreams shattered around her. _


	3. Chapter 3

**October 6, 2013**

_Zendaya sat on her bed, a sketchbook situated on her lap. Her fingers were messy, with different shades of coals smudging the white paper and leaving permanent marks. She was drawing a rose. A beautiful flower that is full of contradictions, known for being both delicate and strong. Her mother often said the same of Zendaya. That she was full of contradictions. She was strong willed and passionate, delicate and insecure. That she was a force to be reckoned with but also that she had a softer side. A side she never allowed anyone to see. A version of herself that she tried to hide behind a mask. She was a rose that had yet to blossom._

_Her mind wandered to the past week. 6 days had passed since she had been chosen as the lead in the school musical, something she had dreamt about for years. Nothing should be able to bring her down. This was her moment but if there was one thing Zendaya had learned it was that nothing was ever perfect. If Zendaya was a rose, Val Chmerkovskiy was the thorn in her side. A cocky, devil-may-care ass with an absolutely unintelligible New York accent. She had had a hard time understanding what he was saying all week in rehearsals and that wasn't a good thing since he was playing the other lead character. She knew he was playing it up, trying to make her angry. Trying to make her so upset that she'd make a fool of herself in front of the other students and Mrs. Hooper. But she wasn't gonna let that happen. She wasn't gonna let him win. She had wanted Spencer to get the part. She knew it was mostly for selfish reasons. She loved Spencer. She had thought that maybe she would've been able to get closer to him if they were both playing the lead parts. That maybe he would start looking at her the way she had spent the last two years looking at him. She knew thinking about this was pointless. She laid the sketchbook on her nightstand and crawled under the covers. It was Monday tomorrow. Another day of rehearsals would be upon her soon and she really needed to be well rested another round of 'battle of the wits' as Val had nicknamed their interactions in rehearsals. Tomorrow was going to be a good day. She could forget about everything when she was singing and dancing. She could forget about her pain._

**October 7, 2013**

_The bell rang and Zendaya slowly picked up her math book. Rehearsals would start in 5 minutes but her chest was filled heavy with dread and she silently prayed for any reason not to go. Her prayers were answered but not in a good way. As she was about to leave the classroom a voice called after her._

"Zendaya, would you mind talking to me a bit?"

_Zendaya turned around and headed in the direction of her math's teacher, a young man named Colin Platt. According Coral and her gang he was the hottest teacher in the whole school, which frankly wasn't difficult. The school was overflowing with overweight, bald and fashionably challenged teachers so Zendaya could understand the obsession with Mr. Platt. She just didn't see it herself._

"What is it Mr. Platt?"_ She smiled, trying to make it seem like she didn't know what was going on but she knew. She knew her work had been even more horrible lately and she knew that it was only a matter of time until Mr. Platt would have that talk with her._

"Well, first of all I want to praise you for the work you've put in these past few weeks. I know you've been working with Spencer, -that he's been tutoring you-, and it's paid off …"

_Zendaya could smell the 'but' coming._

"... but this past week has been, how should I say this .. Frankly, you've declined and your work is getting even worse than it was in the beginning of the semester."

_Zendaya's face fell. She knew she hadn't been handing in her best work but she had not realized how bad it had truly gotten._

"I know you're participating in the school musical. And my concern is that it's too much for you. You're extremely talented, I'm a theater enthusiast myself and I've sneaked into the rehearsals a couple of times. You're doing a wonderful job."

_He smiled reassuringly and looked straight into her eyes_

"I'm not going to ask you to quit."

_Zendaya let out a breath that she had been holding in for what seemed like hours and allowed her head to slump down so she was staring at the ground._

"You have to improve though. You have to learn how to organize yourself. You're not a bad student. You get good grades in other classes I know this. Math is just a bit more difficult for you, like it is for countless others." He stopped talking and Zendaya could feel his eyes staring at her. "Unless I'm misunderstanding this whole situation and there's something else going on. Something that you might want to tell me?"

_Zendaya's head snapped back up and she plastered on her fake smile._

"No, everything you've been saying is correct. I've been so obsessed with the musical that I've neglected everything else. I just want .. I just need this to work out. This is what I want to do, for the rest of my life."

"Then do it. Just do other things as well. Concentrate on building a multitude of skills; don't fixate on just one thing. Deal?"

"Deal."

_He put out his hand for a shake and Zendaya took it._

"See you Wednesday Mr. Platt."

"Looking forward to it Ms. Coleman"

_Zendaya walked quickly down the corridor. She was about 15 minutes late to rehearsals and she knew Mrs. Hooper would not be happy about it. She thought about what Mr. Platt had said to her. She had to do better. She couldn't let the things in her life affect her opportunities. She couldn't let anyone know what was going on. She didn't want sympathy. She didn't need sympathy. She didn't everyone knowing._

_As she pushed open the heavy door that led to the auditorium she heard music. But it wasn't the regular 80's pop/rock that had been filling that space for the past week. It was instrumental. It was classical. As she looked at the stage she saw the cast and crew dancing. Open mouthed she stared at the goings on, watching as Val swayed with confidence all over the stage leading Mrs. Hooper with him. Unfortunately, that same annoying boy quickly noticed her._

"Congratulations on finally making it to rehearsals. You look really unattractive with your mouth open like that."

_All she could hear was the giggle of Coral, who had signed up for wardrobe and make-up but had still managed to do nothing except hang off Val for the entire week. Spencer must have seen how narrow her eyes had gotten because all of a sudden he jumped off the stage and came up next to her._

"Hey deer! You should've been here earlier, this was a blast."

_Zendaya could see Val looking at her from the corner of her eye, a look of quiet confusion on his face. She quickly put on her mask._

"I should have been her earlier? To do … whatever it is that you were doing?"

"It's called ballroom dancing." Zendaya turned her body away from Spencer's so she was in a straight lien against Val, her hands folded neatly over her chest.

"It's partner dances first documented in the 16th century in the upper high class society."

_Zendaya looked at him like he'd grown a second head while Coral and her friends, Heather D. and Heather C., literally swooned at his feet._

"You're so smart Val" Coral drawled while gripping his bicep.

_Val didn't seem to notice the quite bold move on her part because he kept eye contact with Zendaya._

"No, I just try stuff before I knock it." He winked at Zendaya before turning on his heel and heading backstage.

_Coral gave Zendaya a nasty look while she just stood there, hoping the innuendo had flown past Spencer. No such luck._

"Is there something going on with you two?"

_Zendaya practically gasped at Spencer's question. "What are you talking about? Was that a serious question?"_

"Hey calm down Z, save the theatrics for the stage okay? I just got a weird vibe that's all. He definitely seems interested though and he's a fun guy. Maybe you should be a little bit more open to him, ya know. I don't want you to be a spinster forever, I need you to go on double dates with me with all the double D's I'm gonna get when I get famous"

_He winked at her while Zendaya could hear the cracks forming in her heart. That had been such a casual observation. **He likes you, no big deal**. Spencer really didn't care at all._

_She turned away from him as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. She left him standing there while she went backstage. He had struck up a conversation with one of the girls in the supporting cast and didn't even notice her walking away. She sat down on the floor, between two large stacks of crates that were occupied by costumes and hopefully obstructed her from view. As she quietly held her sniffling face in her hands, she could feel a presence beside her. She could smell the faint scent of sweat and honey. It stung her nose a little. She peeked through her fingers and let out a resolute sigh when she saw who it was._

_Val sat down so he was half next to her while still being able to look at her face._

_Zendaya rubbed her eyes and used her jeans to dry the tears from her hands._

"Why are you always near me?"

_Val cocked his head a little, squinting his eyes a bit, like he as trying to find an answer. "You soothe me."_

_Zendaya looked warily at him, knowing that he was making fun of her._

_Val could sense her reaction._ "I'm being serious. You're extremely annoying, you're a know-it-all without actually knowing it all, you think you're better than everyone else and you take things way to seriously. You're sad and you're fake."

_Zendaya's mouth was open and she looked like smoke was about to come out of her ears_

"You're fake because none of the things I just said are the real you. I can see you. I can sense you. Your presence is … Overwhelming. It's like you're a scent that fills every crevice of this building. When you're trying to be someone you're not, when you're just the girl that sits next to me in class, you're soothing. And that's why I seek you out. I don't know why you're sad but maybe one day you'll tell me. Yeah I'm pretty sure one day you will tell me."

_Zendaya wanted nothing more than to say something but she couldn't. She was speechless. For the first time in her life, Zendaya Coleman could not say a word._

"It's also really enjoyable bugging you."

_Zendaya smiled and shook her head when Val burst out laughing._

"But the real reason I came here is because you were 15 minute late to rehearsals and now that my wonderful and charming dancing has stopped Mrs. Hooper is getting quite impatient and I was supposed to find you." _He stood up and reached for her hand, pulling her up to him._

"Where did you learn to dance like that?"

_He put on an extremely bad French accent "Ah but Ms. Zendaya! I will only tell you my secrets when I trust you well enough!" He walked ahead of her, strutting like a catwalk model while Zendaya walked a bit behind him._

"Oh really Mr. Valentin, and when will that be?"

_He stopped and turned around, looking deeply into her eyes_

"When you learn to trust me."

_And with those words he ran onto the stage, bursting into a rendition of Footloose leaving Zendaya more confused than ever._


	4. Chapter 4

**October 8, 2013**

_Val sat on the floor of his bedroom, his bare back resting against the cold wall. He was listening to Vivaldi's 'The Four Seasons'. A concerto that had a deep meaning to him. His father had always said that he could see every member of the family represented in each of the four seasons. Val's father Sasha, a great man, had been spring. Lighthearted and gentle but always formal. His mother, Larisa, was autumn. Dynamic, beautiful and too modest for her own good. Val's older brother Maks was summer. Dynamic, effortless, erratic. Like a thunderstorm that both relaxes you and pains. His father had always, with reluctance, likened Val to winter. Hard. Cold. Precise. Detached. Val had always loved it though. He loved the winter._

_His head was full of different thoughts. He thought about his father. How much he loved and how much he missed him. He thought of his brother. He was 6 years older than Val and had his own life back in New York. He didn't need to follow them across the country. He missed him of course but Val knew he had a good life here with his mother. His mother was his rock. The only one that truly mattered. Right?_

_He thought back to yesterday. What he had said. What had he said?_

_You soothe me. You soothe me? What had he been thinking? What was going on with him? He didn't connect with people. The only people he loved were his parents, his grandmother and his brother. That was it. People in his life were just collateral damage. It was never meant to be that way, they were never meant to get hurt, but it happened. Every time. He wore a mask for the outside world. So that people wouldn't notice who he really was. Why he was so guarded. Why it took him awhile to trust people and when he did, why he never allowed them to see who he really was. He never engaged with anyone in anything more than harmless banter. He was angry with himself for the cracks that had formed in his mask but more than anything he was furious with her. He was furious that these cracks were formed by a girl that didn't even care. And that's why he wowed not to care either._

_He hadn't gone to school today. He hadn't dared. He had made too much of a fool of himself already. Signing up for that stupid musical. Why? To prove that he could? To make his own life even more unbearable? No. He knew why. But it would end now. He grabbed his gym bag and filled it with necessities; a towel, some toiletries and a change of clothes. He needed to let out some steam. He needed to hit something, to feel the strain on his muscles, to run away from everything. Run away from her._

_He was not going to let __**this**__ win. He was stronger. He was stronger than before and he was never going to be weak again._

* * *

"Zendaya! Can you please lower the volume! I can not listen to Bonnie Tyler for another second!"

_Zendaya heard her mother's voice and stepped away from the mirror, where she had been practicing her moves, pressing pause on her stereo. The rehearsals had been going well and Zendaya felt effortless in the role. Like she was born to play it. Like she was born to perform. Unfortunately her schoolwork had suffered a bit, her math homework left much to be desired but after a chat with her math teacher she had realized how important it was. She could pursue her dreams but that did not mean she had to neglect everything else._

_This last year had been rough on her and her mother. With her father gone, Zendaya's mom had to work two jobs to be able to successfully run the house. That didn't leave much time for any sort of a relationship between the two although Zendaya knew that her mother loved her and would always be there for her when she truly needed her. She had felt broken and torn for a long time but she finally felt like she was being pieced back together. Like life finally had a meaning. Like she finally had some meaning._

_She was starting to get noticed around school, not a lot but people were coming up to her and congratulating her on getting the part in the musical. It felt weird, being accepted, but at the same time it felt exhilarating. She had spent so much time perfecting her outsider attitude that she had slowly forgotten that she wasn't that person. She wanted to be recognized. She wasn't who she claimed to be, she wasn't cold and distant but if there was one thing her father had taught her it was how to protect herself. How to not give yourself away._

"Nobody is gonna give you anything in life and nobody is to be trusted my little Zendaya. You make your own fate and your are worthy of whatever you choose, don't let anyone tell you otherwise."_That had been the philosophy her father had given her and although she knew he was right, she was slowly starting to realize that people weren't as bad as he had painted them to be. She had few but wonderful friends. She had made acquaintances in the production and she was starting to loosen around them. There was Spencer, whom she loved dearly but who didn't love her back. He was still her friend and she would not let that go easily. And then there was Val. A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma._

_Val was someone, who at first, she couldn't stand. And she didn't know why. She had tried to tell herself that he was everything she detested. He didn't take anything seriously, he was cocky, he verbalized every single thought he had and could make her blood boil with only the quirk of his lip. But yesterday, yesterday it had been different. He had been different. He had shown himself to her. He saw her hurt because it was mirrored in his own. She had been able to glimpse into his green eyes and see the flashes of pain that reflected deep inside. It had made her realize that he wasn't just a one-dimensional character that was sent to her school to make her heart race in anger. He was something more and it intrigued her. She wanted to know more, she wanted to _

_He hadn't been to school that morning and a no-show at rehearsals. Coral and her merry gang of copycats had spent the entire rehearsal trying to get his phone number from other students but no one seemed to have it or know where he lived. The fact that Coral didn't have his number had made Zendaya undeniable happy, if just because seeing Coral actually work for something was a sight almost never seen._

_Zendaya wanted to know more about him and she was determined to do so. She had made herself a promise that afternoon. She was not going to be that girl again, the one who kept her distance and the one who never trusted anyone. She had changed. She was stronger than before and she was never going to be weak again. _


	5. Chapter 5

**October 8, 2013**

Val wiped the sweat off his forehead. He had spent the last two hours punching a bag in a bid to get rid of all his pent up anger. Anger that needed to be redirected. He had realized that blaming Zendaya wasn't a possibility. She hadn't done anything. These ... feelings he was experiencing. They were his, his fault. He couldn't blame her but he had to do something. He had to distance himself.

All of a sudden he was snapped out of his thoughts by a shrill voice.

"Oh my God Val! I did not know hat you work out here!"

Val turned his head, his best playful smirk plastered on his face "Coral. What a surprise. I never took you as someone who actually works out. Don't you just, do hand stands when you cheer?"

"Not if you wanna get these." She rolled up her tight ombre tank top, revealing her ripped stomach. Val had to admit that the girl was in great shape, annoying as she was. She pulled her tank top back down, a little too much so that her cleavage was very apparent. That was no sports bra she was wearing.

"Like what you see?"

Val's head snapped up and he could feel a flicker of annoyance starting up in his chest. "I've seen worse. And better for that matter." He turned around, ready to leave but thought better of it. "You've got good posture but you really should think about wearing better support. Your back is one of the most important thing about your body."

"Oh" Coral drawled out while walking up to him. "What are the other most important things_about my body_?"

Val stared intently while Coral took her fingers and started gliding them over his chest. She arched a brow and Val knew what was coming next "That's rock hard. Anything else hard?"

He let out a laugh and let his head fall back, a million thoughts running around his head. _How ridiculous is this situation? How pathetic are her come-ons?_ **_How stupid am I?_** He tilted his head back towards her and saw the assured smile grace her features again. She wasn't ugly by no means. In fact, she was kinda perfect. Why was he acting like this? Who in their right mind would walk away from her?

**_What the hell._**

"Do you have a car?"

Coral seemed a bit taken aback but quickly put that smile back on her face "I don't have a car. I have a BMW. Daddy gave it to me when I raised my GPA up to 2.0"

"Of course he did" Val deadpanned before taking her hand and striding out of the gym.

"Val wait, I have to take a shower before we go. I'm all sweaty"

Val let out a rather cold chuckle, only turning his head slightly in her direction "No you don't. Not for this."

* * *

**October 9, 2013**

Zendaya sat down in her psychology class, noticing the empty seat beside her. Val hadn't been to school yesterday and it looked like he wouldn't be in today either. She felt a bit ... _dejected_ about his absence. He had been uncharacteristically sweet to her in play rehearsal two days ago and since then she had wanted to thank him. To let him know that he had in fact helped her a lot. She had been going through a lot this past year and it had hardened her demeanour even more but the way he had talked to her, a_bout_ her, had made her realize that she didn't have to hide away. Zendaya let go of all her thoughts when she saw Val walking into the room. Their eyes met and she felt shivers running down her spine. His normally fiery green eyes were cold. The man from two days ago was gone.

"Babe wait"

Zendaya heard Coral's voice but didn't really register what was happening. She saw her hand something over to Val, which he quickly put in his pocket. Coral walked to her seat, the sound of heels thumping on the floor with ever footstep. A smug look was plastered on her face and she cocked an eyebrow when Zendaya's eyes met hers. Val stood by the door, a vacant look on his face. It was like he couldn't move forward.

Zendaya tried to get his attention, mouthing _what's going on? _in his direction but he wouldn't look at her. Finally Mrs. Kirchner, the psychology teacher walked into the classroom. "Mr. Valentin, I do believe your seat is over there." She pointed to the empty seat that was situated between Zendaya and Coral. Val hesitated a bit before walking to the seat, a walk that Zendaya felt took minutes. As he sat down he didn't say a word. Normally he would say anything to get her riled up. Something about how neatly her pencils and pens were arranged on her desk or how she should get up earlier so she wouldn't always have to put her hair up in that stupid bun or how the reason she had a locker was so she could keep that stupid dictionary in there so it wouldn't mess up her posture.

But there was nothing. All he did was stare straightforward, like a robot. He hadn't even made fun of Coral yet. Something was really wrong.

She leaned a bit to her left, so that Mrs. Kirchner wouldn't hear her whispering. "Hey Val, do you need anything? You don't even have a pencil." She made sure that her voice was light, like she was telling a joke.

No answer.

"I know you're not much of a note guy but ..."

"I don't need _anything _from you"

He hadn't even looked at her.

"I ... "

All of a sudden he turned his head towards her. "Listen, what you think is going on here is _not_. I was nice to you because I wanted something. I didn't get it so I went elsewhere. Don't make it seem like were friends because _this_" he moved his index finger between the two of them "is nothing. **We are nothing**."

The muscles in her face tightened and she moved so that she was sitting straight in her chair. She felt angry but more than that she felt let down. She looked at him. He was back to looking straight forward but his jaw was clenched. She could see the tension in his body and against her better judgment, it made her feel sad. They had been on their way to being friends. She had started to care for him and that wasn't gonna disappear just because he felt like acting this way. She had seen too much in his eyes to believe that this was the real Val.

Zendaya remembered the promise she had given herself yesterday. She was not going back on that. She was going to open herself to the world, she was not going to be weak. And while doing that, she was also going to get beneath the layers of Valentin Chmerkovskiy and she was going to find out who on earth he truly was.

The minutes passed agonisingly slowly. Val didn't once look away from the board. Zendaya had stopped trying to talk to him but Coral repeatedly tried to get his attention with no avail. As soon as the bell rang Val sprung from his seat and walked out of the room. Zendaya could see a hurt look on Coral's face and it both confused and intrigued her. _Everything was so weird today._

As she stared walking down the school corridor she heard her name being called out

"Zendaya. Zendaya! Do you have a minute?" She turned around and saw Mr. Platt, the math teacher, leaning against the doorframe of his classroom.

She felt a bit apprehensive, especially since only two days ago he had told her she needed to get her grades up. She responded favourably though and walked into the room.

"You don't have to be scared, I'm not a bad guy. Really."

Zendaya smiled "I'm not. Just ... curious."

"Well, I was just wondering if you've been meeting up with Spencer? You know, for tutoring?"

Zendaya's heart sank a bit. She had no intentions of asking Spencer to keep in tutoring her. Not after their last conversation together. It hurt too much having him around her in rehearsals, tutoring would be too much."

"Actually Spencer isn't tutoring me anymore. He just has too much going on with his own schoolwork and the play rehearsals. It just became too much for him."

She saw Mr. Platt's face turn into one of confusion. "Really? Spencer has always been extremely good at multitasking and his grades have never slipped even though he's in every extra curricular thing in this school. That's very weird."

Zendaya quickly answered him. "I think it's because it's his senior year, you know. His parents are really riding him hard about Harvard and he feels like he has to succeed. I think that's it yeah."

Mr. Platt looked deep in thought but nodded his head. "Yeah, that might be it. He's got big footsteps to follow. But what about you then? Have you found someone else to help you?"

"No, ehm, it's ... No I haven't. I don't really know a lot of people at the school so ... " Zendaya felt a bit awkward. She normally didn't speak so candidly to anyone, especially her teachers but somehow Mr. Platt felt different.

"Look, there's a tutor service at the school where you can get assigned a tutor for the class you need. But ... something tells me that would feel a bit uncomfortable to you? I don't know, it's just a guess." He smiled at her and she shyly reciprocated it.

"How about me?"

Zendaya looked quizzically at him. "How about you _what_?"

"What if I tutor you? I am a **math** teacher, I should be able to."

"I don't know, isn't that like a conflict of interest?"

Mr. Platt looked at her with a funny expression on his face. "I'm not quite sure you know what that means. I need to talk to your English teacher."

"Ha-ha, very funny. I mean, you're like a teacher."

"You're very sharp Ms. Coleman."

"AND the point of tutoring is getting someone else to help you, not the teacher. And it's been like, a really long time since you were in school and I'm not sure you would be good at tutoring although you're like a great teacher I'm just not good at math and ..."

"Zendaya breathe, okay? I'm 24. Which means I've been out of school for two years. Granted that was college but you're going to be there in two years time so I'm not some kind of a dinosaur. I'm patient and understanding. I don't want to toot my own horn but I'm actually quite cool."

"Toot your own horn? That's not cool Mr. Platt."

"My offer stands. You need help Zendaya. You do don't argue. And I'm offering it. Just think about it, all right?"

"I will." She started walking towards the door but suddenly turned around. "I'm grateful. I really am. I'm just not ... I'm not really good with people offering me their help. My dad ... He used to tell me that no one could be trusted, that I had to stand on my own. Be my own person. And I really took that to heart. But I feel like I'm changing and I just wanted to let you know that ..." Zendaya sighed as she could feel her embarrassment rising, her cheeks slowly turning redder with each minute. "**I am grateful**. Thanks."

Mr. Platt offered her a warm smile as she turned around once again and left. This new Zendaya was scaring her a bit but she also felt like a burden was being lifted from her shoulders. Being open about her feelings was not a weakness, it was a strength and she was finally going to be a person hat felt comfortable with herself and others.


End file.
